1000s Of Signatures Submitted To Force Vote On Sacramento Kings Arena

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SACRAMENTO (CBS/AP) — A group fighting the city of Sacramento’s plan to subsidize a new basketball arena for the Kings has submitted tens of thousands of signatures in an attempt to force a public vote on the matter.

Sacramento Taxpayers Opposed to Pork, or STOP, submitted 34,000 signatures on Friday for verification by Sacramento County election officials.

The group needs 22,027 valid voter signatures to get the initiative on the June ballot.

The NBA has told Sacramento it must build a modern arena to keep the Kings in town. The city has approved paying $258 million of the project’s estimated $448 million cost.

California’s campaign watchdog agency disclosed in August that billionaire Chris Hansen, who lost a bid to move the Kings to Seattle, secretly gave $80,000 to pay signature gatherers trying to qualify the measure.

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